2020 Ohio 6845
Ohio Ct. App.2020Background
- In Sept. 2012 a Delaware County grand jury indicted David Nelms on multiple counts including engaging in a pattern of corrupt activity and possession of heroin; many counts carried human-trafficking specifications.
- Nelms pled no contest on June 11, 2013 to engaging in a pattern of corrupt activity and possession of heroin; other counts/specifications were dismissed; he was sentenced to 12 years.
- Nelms appealed; this court affirmed his convictions in 2014 after rejecting his venue/jurisdiction challenge on direct appeal.
- On Dec. 27, 2019 Nelms moved to vacate the judgment claiming the R.C. statutory monetary threshold (>$1,000) for the pattern-of-corrupt-activity count was not alleged in the indictment, so the court lacked subject-matter jurisdiction and his plea/conviction were void; he also attacked the factual basis for his plea.
- The trial court denied the motion as barred by res judicata and found the indictment sufficient; it also denied Nelms’s motions to strike the State’s memorandum (extension of time issues) and his motion for reconsideration. Nelms appealed; the appellate court affirmed.
Issues
| Issue | Plaintiff's Argument (State) | Defendant's Argument (Nelms) | Held |
|---|---|---|---|
| Whether the trial court must take judicial notice under Evid.R. 201(D) as Nelms requested | State did not contest discretionary denial; court properly declined | Nelms argued the court was required to take judicial notice of facts he supplied | Court rejected the claim (denial not reversible); did not find required judicial notice changed result |
| Whether the trial court lacked jurisdiction under R.C. 2941.08(E) and R.C. 2923.31(I)(2)(C) | State: jurisdiction existed; defects (if any) are waivable and precluded by res judicata | Nelms: statutory elements/venue/jurisdictional requirements were unmet, so judgment is void | Court held defendant’s arguments were barred by res judicata; subject-matter jurisdiction was not affected by alleged indictment defects |
| Whether the indictment was defective for omitting the $1,000 monetary threshold element for the pattern-of-corrupt-activity count | State: indictment was sufficient; omission (if any) renders indictment voidable, not jurisdictional | Nelms: omission of the monetary threshold rendered the indictment invalid and the plea/conviction void | Court held any indictment defect was voidable (not jurisdictional), was subject to res judicata, and indictment was sufficient |
| Whether the trial court erred in accepting Nelms’s no-contest plea absent a properly-averred jurisdictional monetary element | State: plea and factual basis were adequate; challenges could have been raised on direct appeal | Nelms: plea acceptance was invalid because indictment failed to allege jurisdictional element | Court held plea challenge was barred by res judicata and the factual-basis/sufficiency argument failed; conviction stands |
Key Cases Cited
- State v. Perry, 10 Ohio St.2d 175 (doctrine of res judicata bars claims that were or could have been raised at trial or on direct appeal)
- Grava v. Parkman Twp., 73 Ohio St.3d 379 (res judicata principles and final judgment effect)
- United States v. Cotton, 535 U.S. 625 (defective indictments typically affect facial validity but do not always implicate subject-matter jurisdiction)
- State ex rel. Tubbs Jones v. Suster, 84 Ohio St.3d 70 (subject-matter jurisdiction cannot be waived and may be challenged at any time)
- State v. Fischer, 128 Ohio St.3d 92 (void sentences may be reviewed at any time)
- State v. Payne, 114 Ohio St.3d 502 (distinguishing void versus voidable sentences)